Today marks the release of Bay Dream, the sophomore album from Culture Abuse. Bay Dream is the band’s first full-length release for Epitaph Records. Listen to Bay Dream at Spotify now.

Bay Dream includes the recently released single “Dip.” In creating the track’s high-concept yet lo-fi video (which premiered on Tuesday), director Ryan Baxley built a human-sized photocopy machine, and essentially turned the clip into an animated zine. Watch the video for “Dip” by Culture Abuse here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVTiKdTTOjE

Having just completed a tour with Turnstile and Touché Amoré, Culture Abuse are on tour now with The Bronx in Europe. Culture Abuse will return to the US in July for three record release shows in New York, Los Angeles, and Oakland, with special guest appearances. In addition, Culture Abuse will join Nothing for a co-headlining tour in the US in September.

Today, Alkaline Trio announce US tour dates in August and October. The August dates begin August 3 in Dallas, TX at The Bomb Factory and go throughout August 26 in Orlando, FL at House of Blues. The second leg picks up on October 4 in Santa Ana, CA at The Observatory and will conclude on October 18 in Santa Cruz, CA at The Catalyst.

Matt Skiba explains, “Seems like ages since we’ve properly toured and we couldn’t be more excited to get back out and play for the best fans a band could ask for. If people are half as psyched as we are then it’s gonna be a party!”

We’re fired up to finally share with you the details of the new Strung Out EP, Black Out the Sky, to be released on May 11th. While Strung Out has made their name on intense, frenetic slabs of metal-influenced tech-punk, there is more to the band than meets the eye. It might come as a shock to learn that the band’s new eight-song release is an acoustic affair, but as vocalist Jason Cruz explains, it’s not nearly as surprising for the band members.

“Every song starts on an acoustic guitar for the most part,” Cruz begins. “If it’s a good song, it can be played acoustic. For about the past five years, I’ve been pushing the band to release a record in this format.”
The result is six brand new songs, as well as two re-worked older songs, “Matchbook” and “UnKoil.” Today, you can hear the first new track from the EP, “Town of Corazon,” over at Brooklyn Vegan. It’s a surprisingly subdued song from a band who is usually anything but that. As if that weren’t enough, Strung Out is touring the US and Canada with Pennywise, which kicks off this week!

Cruz and his bandmates—Kiley, Ramos and bassist Chris Aiken—began working on Black Out The Sky in January 2017 with producer Kyle Black, who they had previously teamed up with on 2015’s blistering Transmission.Alpha.Delta, and who played a role in the band deciding to re-work two older songs, “Matchbook” and “UnKoil,” for the release.

“Kyle is a fan of the band,” the singer says. “I am the kind of person who wants to stray and go out into the unknown when I’m in the studio, but Kyle represents our fans. He didn’t let me stray too far with the melody or the music—just far enough to keep it fresh.”

With no set deadline on the release, the recording process went on for nearly the entirety of 2017, allowing for song arrangements to bloom in ways Strung Out songs never had before. “The songs came out really super-dark, not jingly-jangly acoustic stuff,” Cruz says. “We had to get other musicians involved. Some of it is sparse and intimate, and some of it has a lot going on.”

During the recording process, the band decided they needed to part ways with Jordan Burns, the band’s drummer since 1993. Cruz stresses that this decision was not an easy one to make, but it had to happen for the continued existence of Strung Out. “I think the band needed it,” Cruz admits. “It needed to happen for the band to survive and grow. We got to a point where we were going to break up if it didn’t.”

While in the studio, Strung Out realized some of the acoustic songs still needed drums. So the band enlisted their friend Sean Winchester, an accomplished drummer who has played with Everclear, Buckcherry and more, to fill out their sound. For their upcoming live shows, Strung Out will enlist RJ Shankle of California skate-punk band (and former tourmates) Runaway Kids to man the throne. Cruz is ecstatic about not only the fresh blood in his band, but what it means moving forward.

“Really, the whole theme of this record is rebirth,” he explains. “It’s the rebirth of our brotherhood and being a band. It’s astounding when you can keep a relationship together for three decades. There’s something so special about the music we write. We’re brothers beyond any kind of blood. It vindicates that we’re doing something right.

“I always ask myself, ‘What nerve do I have to get in front of a microphone?’” Cruz continues. “The fact that I kept this relationship together for 30 years says we worked through some shit. In our darkest times, we always came out with something beautiful because of it. In my mind, that gives me the right to get in front of that microphone.”

On Black Out The Sky, Cruz continues to dig deep internally, exploring parts of himself he’s yet to fully understand, taking the listener along for the ride, no matter how bumpy it may get.

“When we were kids, we all said, ‘Fuck God, fuck religion, fuck the government, let’s destroy it all,’” the frontman states. “Great. We did that. Punk rock did that. What are you gonna replace it with? Black Out The Sky is all about looking inward and finding what’s always been there, that intuition, that something to all of us. I don’t know what it is, but it’s the journey to find it and acknowledge it.”

Musically, the EP careens from songs that could be ported to full-band electric arrangements easily (“Requiem,” the title track) to mid-tempo grunge indebted to Alice In Chains (“The Architect”) to a full-on rollicking country song (“Duke Of Sorrow”). Cruz’s favorite number is “Town Of Corazon,” a surprisingly fragile song from a band who is usually anything but that. “’Town Of Corazon’ has the most balls we’ve ever displayed because it’s sweet and tender,” he admits. “It brings reference to spring and a new awakening. I’m so tired of screaming, the same riff, the same breakdown… I can’t stomach it anymore. Slipping in a sweet melody is the punkest thing we could do.”

Nearly three decades in, Strung Out is not driven by trends but instead by each other. As Cruz relays, “There is no ‘me’ in this band. It’s us. Whatever we think of, we’re gonna do it. Sometimes, people want to maintain a youthful aura about their band. That’s gone. We’re old dudes. But we’ve learned a thing or two. There’s nothing wrong with being an old dude. Lemme show you a road that I found; come with me.”

Jeff Rosenstock certainly knows how to start 2018 the right way – by surprise releasing his brand new album POST- on New Year’s Day for free download/donation on Bandcamp via Quote Unquote Records. He also announced his new label home – Polyvinyl Record Co. – who will give POST- a physical release on vinyl, cassette and CD on March 23, 2018. Pre-order is currently available.

Co-director David Combs says of the concept, “Jeff wanted to make a video featuring a character who, consequence free, carelessly destroys everything around them. The idea of such a character reminded me of how often the abuse of power is a thoughtless exercise for those who hold it, so we decided to expand on the idea and make it a commentary on how abusive patterns get replicated — where the effects are passed downward hierarchically and the people with the least power experience the consequences most intensely. You know, also it’s fun to watch people smash shit, so we tried to have a good time with that too.”

Upcoming tour dates (tour starts today!) and a full bio on Jeff and the record can be found below. Get ready for more exciting news – 2018 promises to be a big year for Jeff.

Epitaph Records is pleased to welcome surf-punk band The Frights to its roster. The San Diego-based band features Mikey Carnevale (vocals/guitar), Richard Dotson (bass), Marc Finn (drums) and Jordan Clark (guitar).

Today, The Frights share their new song “Valentine’s Sux.” With its sticky melody and bouncy rhythm, the sing-along-ready breakup anthem touches on everything from bummer dinners at Benihana to bad barber-shop-quartet-related life decisions.

“‘Valentine’s Sux’ was really fun to write mainly because I was in the middle of writing our next record,” says Carnevale. “I’d been on that every day for a long time, so it was a good break to write something funny. Is this what is feels like to be Weird Al? Just constantly happy? So sick.”

On February 14, The Frights will headline The Fonda Theatre in L.A. for a special Valentine’s Day show celebrating the release of this track. Thee Commons will join as support.

Formed in 2012, The Frights made their debut with 2013’s Dead Beach EP and released their self-titled full-length later that year. Their sophomore album You Are Going To Hate This arrived in 2016, debuting on the CMJ Top 200 chart. Produced by FIDLAR’s Zac Carper, You Are Going To Hate This earned acclaim from outlets like Brooklyn Vegan (who praised the title track as a “super catchy blend of Weezer, SoCal pop punk, and Burger-y garage rock”).

“We couldn’t be more excited to start a new path with Epitaph,” says Carnevale. “Some of our favorite bands have been on this label and it seems pretty bizarre that we’re joining them. Super, super stoked.”

Formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1999, The Lawrence Armshave remained unchanged since day one. Sure, the band’s brand of anthemic punk has evolved over their nearly two decades together, but at the core of it all, they’re still just three guys who like to play music together. In honor of the band’s 19 years in the game, on March 30, Fat Wreck Chords will release We Are TheChampions Of The World, a 29-song best-of album that chronicles the band’s steady evolution over the past two decades.

Culled from the band’s entire discography, which includes their releases on Asian Man Records, Epitaph Records, and FAT, We Are The Champions Of The World serves as both a retrospective and an introduction to the Chicago institution. The tracklist was handpicked by the band—bassist-vocalist Brendan Kelly, guitarist-vocalist Chris McCaughan, and drummer Neil Hennessy—in order to show how these three friends went from making gritty, lo-fi records to becoming some of the sharpest songwriters in all of punk.

Oh, and just so we’re totally clear here, it’s not a greatest hits album.

“I think you have to have hits to make a greatest hits,” says Kelly, “So we approached the song selection in an attempt to be indicative of our evolution, rather than focus on our ‘hits,’ of which, frankly, there are none.” Instead, We Are The Champions Of The World showcases every part of the band’s storied career, from their 1999 debut album A Guided Tour Of Chicago, all the way up to 2014’s Metropole. “In the end, I’m super grateful for the collective experience and history of being in this band with two guys I have known forever and love dearly and are my fam,” says McCaughan. “I guess that’s what this record kind of means and reaffirms for me.”

With liner notes written by both Kelly and McCaughan, the pair reflect on how each song came to be, sharing anecdotes about what inspired them to put pen to paper. But of course, they aren’t trying to tell you what the songs are actually about, because what’s the fun in that? “I don’t think that it’s cool to be prescriptive in song meanings because that leads to the erroneous conclusion that the song has one meaning: the songwriter’s intent,” says Kelly. “In truth, songs have no meaning until a listener connects with it and imbues it with what it means to them. I did offer a few of my interpretations of Chris’s songs, and vice versa, because even though I play and sing on his songs, I didn’t write em, so I’m interpreting them along with any other listener.”

McCaughan shares that perspective, noting that the band wanted to shed light on their creative process without ruining the mythology fans had built up. “I’ve never been able to really explain or pinpoint exactly what songs I’ve written are about anyway—so I guess that lowers the risk of potential disappointment for people who like our band reading the liner notes and being like ‘Damn, I used to love that song but it’s actually about Tide Pods or the Milwaukee Bucks,’” says McCaughan.

But the biggest perk for diehard fans of The Lawrence Arms will be the five previously unreleased songs included on We Are The Champions Of The World. Taken from recording sessions that spawned the band’s classic 2006 album Oh! Calcutta!, these five songs have been in the vault for over a decade. “They didn’t make the cut because they just didn’t fit in the structure of that album, which ended up being very focused and thematic,” says Kelly. Some of these songs never made it past the demo stage, but even so, they show how tightly focused the band was during this period, with even the scraps left behind sounding vital and potent. “I hadn’t heard these songs in over ten years,” says McCaughan. “I’d basically forgotten they existed at all, so listening back to a few of them was initially like stepping into some strange portal—then as soon as I heard them again my memory filled out.”

And for fans who have been aching to see the band play live again, We Are The Champions Of The World will see the band touring in support of the album throughout 2018. Not only will they be hitting parts of the United States they haven’t been to in years and they’ll even be heading back to Europe for some festival dates this summer. It’s been a while since The Lawrence Arms have hit the road, and We Are The Champions Of the World is the catalyst for the band to get back in the van and spread their unique brand of merriment. And maybe, if all goes well, a new Lawrence Arms record will follow. “I think I speak for all of us when I say it’s pretty astounding that people still care that we do this,” says Kelly. “And as long as that’s the case, we’ll keep making new music.”But for now, We Are The Champions Of The World serves as a celebration for The LawrenceArms, a band that’s never tried to fit in one specific box and, as a result, have succeeded on their own terms. “We just do our best to do us—be human, transparent, and not take ourselves too seriously,” says McCaughan. “At the core, this is what I love about our band.” That’s the reason why The Lawrence Arms are champions of the world, even if they’ve still yet to write an actual hit.

Long Island’s Oso Oso have just signed to Triple Crown Records! Triple Crown will be reissuing the indie punk band’s critically acclaimed 2017 album The Yunahon Mixtape, which can be heard now on Spotify, Apple Music, and across all streaming platforms. The band has also just released a music video for their song “Reindeer Games” off of that record. The video can be seen now via Triple Crown Records.

Oso Oso is on tour now with Tiny Moving Parts and Mom Jeans. A full list of dates can be found below.

Oso Oso is the latest project of Jade Lilitri out of Long Beach, New York. After a couple of early records, the band self-released their first fully realized album The Yunahon Mixtape on Bandcamp in early 2017. Despite this low key release, the album quickly gained traction across the scene, winning over both fans and critics with it’s diverse, recognizable knack for memorable choruses and instantly relatable lyrics. In 2018 the band was signed by Triple Crown Records, who plan to reissue The Yunahon Mixtape in advance of new music coming soon.

A quote from Jade Lilitri on signing to Triple Crown Records can be found below.

“Can you even believe it? As a fan of music, it’s super exciting to be working with a label that not only has a collection of so many releases I love, but is also engaged and working with exciting young bands who are doing it today. As an artist, it’s beyond exciting to have this kind of backing to allow you to grow/explore and just reach a new potential in what Oso Oso can create. I’m generally stoked on all ends.”

The Yunahon Mixtape Tracklisting
1. The Cool
2. Reindeer Games
3. The Walk
4. The Bearer Of Truths
5. Get There (When You Get There)
6. Great Big Beaches
7. Shoes (The Sneaker Song)
8. The Slope
9. The Secret Spot
10. The Plant Mouth
11. Out Of The Blue

Praise For The Yunahon Mixtape

“Lilitri is as much of a student of his influences as he is a fan, understanding the exact methods that make the sound of this music hit a certain way at a certain age and linger in the years to come.” – Pitchfork

German thrash tinged Melodic Skate Punk act Straightline are touring Australia for the very first time in March with Melbourne punks Blind Man Death Stare. Straightline recently released the excellent full length “Vanishing Values” through US label Bird Attack Records. The record is full of razor tight playing, melodic hooks, and a positive social message reminiscent of acts such as A Wilhelm Scream, Strike Anywhere and Municipal Waste.

Straightline have toured Europe, Japan and Latin America extensively and played massive festivals such as Groezrock, Punk Rock Holiday and Mighty Sounds. The infectious, melodic and insanely energetic live show from Straightline will be a rare treat for Australian audiences.

Blind Man Death Stare

Melbourne punk rockers Blind Man Death Stare (BMDS) have been on an unstoppable rampage since the release of their debut full length “It”ll Grow On Ya” through Arrest Records in July. The band recently completed a 40 date tour of Australia, NZ and Asia, taking in five countries in the space of 3 months.

Strip searches at customs, spiked drinks and a hunger for the chaos of the road seems to be par for the course at BMDS HQ, with the band showing no signs of slowing down. They are currently wrapping up yet another national tour with Guttermouth. The extensive 12 date tour kicks off in early March.

“A driven, feverish, splutteringly angry rock album about living in a world where the prevailing climate has become so anti-human, so apocalyptically bleak, that it’s all you can do to scream into a pillow sometimes.” – Stereogum, Album of the Week

Canadian punk band Propagandhi have announced 2018 North American tour dates. Propagandhi are touring in support of their seventh album Victory Lap (September 29 via Epitaph). La Armada and Iron Chic will open the show. Tickets go on sale December 8 at 9am local time. For more information visit https://propagandhi.com/

Since forming in Manitoba in 1986, Propagandhi have brought an emphatic anti-fascist message to their music. Along with addressing a number of personal losses suffered in recent years, Victory Lap finds the band facing a landscape in which fascism is—among a certain crowd—suddenly trendy.

The band’s first full-length in five years, Victory Lap arrives as the follow-up to 2012’s acclaimed Failed States. Victory Lap also marks Propagandhi’s first album with new guitarist Sulynn Hago, who joins Samolesky, frontman Chris Hannah, and bassist Todd Kowalski. Replacing longtime guitarist David Guillas (who appears on several tracks on Victory Lap), Hago was added to the lineup after Propagandhi put out a call for audition tapes and received over 400 responses.